June 15, 2020
Jeremiah 20:7-10 … “For whenever I speak, I must cry out, I must shout, ‘Violence and destruction!’ For the word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long.” vs. 8
Jeremiah gives us a glimpse of his mindset in today’s passage and he obviously wasn’t enjoying his work as Prophet. The message given him by the Lord sparked resentment in all that heard it, and he was regularly mocked on all the social media networks. He was a laughingstock in the streets and even his friends had turned against him. But he couldn’t keep his mouth shut! When he tried to remain quiet, a passion boiled up in his heart, and he gave voice to the words of doom given him by the Lord. That’s how it is with Prophets! We see that clearly in these turbulent times. Some people just can’t be still! We hear their provocative words and think to ourselves, “Why can’t they just shut up? All that divisive rhetoric does no one any good—they’re making a bad situation worse.” When their words are offensive to us it’s hard to think of them as Prophets; in our minds they’re only self-serving trouble-makers. But that’s exactly what the people of Jerusalem thought about Jeremiah. Could it be that some of the provocateurs who get under our skins are actually bringing a word from the Lord? It’s easy in our complacency to overlook injustice and it’s always easier to ignore problems when they don’t directly affect us. Maybe a jolting word from the Lord is exactly what we need!
Thought for the Day: What keeps me from being a prophet?
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